Glen More

Different clans attempts to steadily increase their landholdings, which they can activate for specific benefits: resources that can be used to gain new territory or transformed into victory points; or new clan members to oversee territorial expansion; or any of the 13 special locations, which offer particular advantages to their owners. This is to say nothing of the countless whiskey distilleries and taverns …

Set a stout hert ti a stey brae! - Sets you up for the challenge!

User Reviews (4)

Glen More sees each player as the head of their own Scottish Clan, looking to expand their holdings and earn victory points through various means. Each turn, players pick a tile from the central round track and add it to their own set, activating it and the surrounding tiles (which give you goods, let you trade goods for points, move your clansmen around etc.) Tiles are replenished into the track, and the game ends when there are no more tiles in the reserve. After a final set of scoring, the person with the most victory points is the winner.

The two distinguishing features of Glen More that set it apart from other tile-laying games are the tile-taking mechanic and the tile-placement mechanic. Firstly, each player has a marker on the tile track, making turn order variable: the person who’s farthest behind on the track gets to take the next turn. This introduces the standard Euro risk v. reward question of “do I jump ahead for that really good tile and risk other players getting more turns than me, or do I hang back and take tiles I might not want so I don’t have to wait?”

And secondly, you’re only allowed to place a tile into your set if it’s adjacent to one of your clansmen (meeples that pop up on Village tiles but that can also be moved around on subsequent turns). Managing where your clansmen are and where they might go to keep your options open is a big part of the game, as you can easily lock yourself out of tile placement options if you’re not careful.

Casual gamers may be a bit lost with Glen More: there’s a lot to keep track of and knowledge of the various tiles is helpful in shaping long term strategy. Avid and strategic gamers will be right at home, however, as the resource-engine building and end-game scoring opportunities follow the standard Euro formula. The game also presents enough interesting decisions, multiple paths to victory, and clever mechanisms that it easily is one of the better medium-heavy euro games out there.

If there’s one drawback to Glen More, it’s that the theme is very thin. While most mechanics are thematically justified (turning in sheep to a butcher gives you victory points), the game as a whole is a fairly dry experience. If you demand a higher level of integration of theme and mechanics, Glen More won’t float your boat. But if you like crunchy middle-weight euros, definitely check this game out.

Each player manages the areas of a scottish clan building farms, butchers, breweries and castles tiles to expand its territory. Every turn you chose a new tile for your clan territory which you need to strategically place in order to gain the best benefits. This choice also brings into consideration taking a tile that one of your opponents may need in the future. This tile choosing mechanism uses a track that you can chose which tile to take and depending on the position you can take more or less tiles than your opponents.

The scoring system is based on the difference from the lowest score player in each scoring resource, so you can’t invest in only one thing. It also rewards players who have the least tiles so they need to build their territory the best way possible but without using too many tiles.

It’s a pretty well done game with great choices with a simple and fast gameplay. An excellent light-middle euro.

I may have never heard about this game had I not seen it on the shelf at a local gaming meetup. I looked at the back, saw vaguely Carcassonne-looking components, and decided to check it out. I’m glad I did, because Glen More is now one of my groups new favorites.

The game is simple on its surface, but there are lots of decisions to make along the way, and if you don’t plan ahead properly while laying your tiles you can paint yourself into a corner later in the game. Every time I’ve played either myself or someone else will say something to the effect of, “Dangit, I should have done that differently last turn.” The ideal strategy is often not obvious, which is great.

It’s a quick game, playing in about an hour. And unlike a lot of my collection it scales really well. I’ve played games with two, four, and five players and it has been excellent every time. Highly recommended.